November 2009

CRC. It’s not one of those acronyms that rolls off your tongue. But the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) – which, 20 years ago this month, became the first legally binding international convention to affirm human rights for all children – really did make a difference.

Looking back on this landmark action, we also see the value in small steps made by volunteer advocacy groups like The Junior League in advance of big steps made by international bodies like United Nations, with the CRC, or governmental organizations. Because, as we see it, passionate volunteer groups – wherever they are – can set the stage for policy solutions to tough issues.

For many, it’s hard to remember a time when Big Bird—the eight-foot, two-inch bright yellow bird who skates, dances and sings—wasn’t a daily feature of Sesame Street. But we do.

Before Sesame Street aired for the first time on November 10, 1969, TV programming for kids was a joke without a punch line. Howdy Doody was better than most commercial efforts, but it never claimed to be educational. Then came Big Bird.

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About The Junior League

Ever-evolving needs. Empowered to Lead.
Founded in 1901 by New Yorker and social activism pioneer Mary Harriman, The Junior League is an organization of transformational female leaders who set bold goals, open their circles, disrupt convention and change the conversation for the betterment of civil society.